Capt.  Wm.  M.  Foord, 
Fort  Monroe,  Va, 
10  South  Barracks, 
Fort  Monroe,  Va. 
January  17th.  1918. 
Ever  since  lzst  July  I  have  been  in  the  military  service 
and  it  has  been  not  easy  to  keep  up  the  usual  customs  of 
personal  correspondence,  so  that  when  I  received  you  letter  a 
little  while  ago,  telling  of  Mrs.  pemni s  death,  even  though  I 
wanted  to  answer  it  right  sway,  I  had  to  wait  until  a  favorable 
opportunity  came. 
I  was  much  grieved  to  learn  of  your  great  loss  although 
you  had  previously  written  me  that  she  was  not  well.  I  only 
met  Mrs,  Dean  once,  when  I  was  in  Boston  in  1909  but  ijiy  memory 
of  her  was  most  pleasant  and  so  much  has  passed  between  you  and 
through  late  years  that  I  feel  indeed  as  if  she  were  an  old 
friend.  Well,  these  things  are  very  hard  and  the  fact  that 
they  must  come  does  not  make  them  any  easier  to  bear  but  however 
•  much  we  may  miss  the  companionship  and  presence  of  those  we 
love,  nothing  can  deprive  us  of  the  loving  memory  that  their 
every  service  has  endeared.  Things  dont  go  on  just  the  same 
and  therefore  great  holes,  as  it  were,  in  our  lives  that  nothing 
else  can  fill.  Yfe  would  not  want  to  fill  them  if  we  could  but 
rather  wish  to  preserve  them  even  though  that  preservation 
gives  us  pain. 
In  my  last  letter  to  you  I  think  I  mentioned  the  arria- 
yal  °f  Malcolm, Jr.  That  was  nearly  two  years  ago  although 
it  does  not  seem  that  long,  yet  even  in  that  time  Malcolm  has 
acquired  another  brother  and  he  is  a  year  old  the  7th  of  this 
month.  We  now  have  a  very  considerable  family  of  three  and 
all  of  the  masculine  persuasion.  When  I  get  back  to  Stamford 
the  latter  part  of  this  month  I  will  send  you  a  kodak  picture 
of  us  all ^  so  you  can  really  see  us.  Everett  Henderson,  for 
madeleine  s  bother  who  dies  several  years  ago,  is  the  new  baby's 
name.  He  might  also  be  called  "Beriod"  for  I  think  we  had 
better  stop  there,  for  a  while  at  least. 
I  am  very  proud  of  my  family  and  of  course  regard  them 
J  as^  the  superiors  in  looks,  intelligence  and  strength  of  all 
other  boys.  With  this  to  be  taken  in  advance  you  may^yduh  ■‘own’"”'’ J 
Q-iscounts  due  to  fatherly  pride,  Archie  is  now  three  and  a  hhlf 
suid  is  a  very  manly  little  fellow.  He  is  so  str  eight  forward 
and  earnest.  Y/hen  I  am  home  for  a  few  hours  leave  he  dogs  my 
tracks  from  morn  till  eve  and  whatever  I  do,  he  does  also,  It 
is  very  funny.  Malcolm  is  developing  fast  but  is  going  to  be 
3Eia,ller  phyoicaly  that  Archie  unless  he  takes  a  sprint  later 
His .mental  development  has  been  more  rapid  than  Archies 
that  is  in  the  same  time  and  he  is  quicker.  Archie  goes  at 
things  head  on  (like  his  Bad)  while  Malcolm  makes  a  quick 
estimate  of^the  situation  and  then  gets  away  with  it  by  a  run 
around  the  flank.  He  is  very  clever  and  very  funny.  A  great 
